


Catch Me If You Can

by Fighting_for_Creativity



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: A game of chase, Anal Sex, Criminal Bucky Barnes, Enemies to Lovers, Ex-Criminal Tony Stark, Glossed over background, Happy Ending, Light Angst, Lovers To Enemies, M/M, Mention of Death, Porn with Feelings, Team as Family, Tony Stark Feels, Tony was The Mechanic, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, kinda modern au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:15:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26273221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fighting_for_Creativity/pseuds/Fighting_for_Creativity
Summary: The Winter Soldier was a wanted Criminal. No one seemed to know who he was. Every time the Avengers went out to find him, they came back empty-handed. At one point the criminal started to leave messages for the Avengers.Still, they weren't any closer than they had been before, and were beginning to think it was little more than a wild goose chase.That was until Tony Stark found himself faced with more of his past than he liked.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark
Comments: 10
Kudos: 166
Collections: Bucky Barnes Bingo 2020, Marvel, Merchant of Death





	Catch Me If You Can

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tisfan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tisfan/gifts).



> After finally finishing a scene which had bothered me, I reworked most of everything for the ending and added some more plot.
> 
> This fic is brought to you by Tisfan. I had her pick a prompt and a pairing and then wrote this.
> 
> Tis, this little fanfic is a thank you for all the work you do for the fandom and for being an awesome person.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this~

They had been playing this game for a while now. Tony was precisely aware of the Winter Soldier’s true identity. Heck, Tony had gathered enough evidence to get their enemy sentenced to death. But he couldn’t tell anyone who he was. The name was flashed on his holoscreen, taunting him. The last message from the Winter Soldier next to it, mocking him. **_‘Catch me if you can’_ **

“Sir?”

“J, would you rather break the law or break someone’s heart? Someone you consider family.”

The AI hesitated with his answer. A few of his protocols clashed with this. For one, he was supposed to act in the best interests of his Creator, his Sir, who seemed to value family over the law. But the law could hurt Sir. Then there was the megalomaniac protocol. JARVIS was supposed to never let Tony break laws involving human lives. 

“I… I’d consider both consequences and would decide upon the lesser evil. May I suggest going for a walk? Research shows that obtaining greater distance from the problem at hand can help with the decision making process.”

Tony was silent for a while. With a sigh, he stood, stretching his arms and back, before saying, “You’re right J. I‘ll go for a walk. Maybe that way I’ll gain new perspective.”

  
  


~~~

  
  


The walk did not help. Or rather, it only helped to make Tony even more indecisive. 

The engineer was on his way back when he felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Someone was watching him, someone who was far too close. ‘ _Shit!_ ’ 

Tony’s brain fought against the panic, angry at himself for being dumb enough to not take his phone with him, and his tracker had needed to be replaced since the last Avenger operation had fried it. He took a few more steps before a strong hand - a hand he _knew_ \- wrapped around his wrist and yanked him into a side alley. Tony was stuck between his fight or flight instincts and wanted nothing more than to deck Barnes. “Wha-”

“I know you know.”

That was not Bucky’s tone. At least not the one he usually used. That was a voice Tony only associated with the- “Winter Soldier.”

“Yes. So, how I see it, we have two options here, Mechanic.”

That name. That name brought back things Tony had hoped never to remember. He felt the way that, despite the panic, his body relaxed, his posture becoming nonchalant. Tony’s gaze sharpened and his breathing evened out. “I don’t know what kind of options you’re talking about.”

“You don’t? Well, then I have to lay it out.” Bucky - no, Winter - drawled. 

“One-“ the Winter Soldier pressed Tony against the brick wall behind them before he continued “-you keep quiet, and we never talk about any of this. Or two, you tell them who I am, and I tell them who Hydra’s Mechanic was.”  
  


“I don’t know who you’re-”

Winter pressed closer, metal hand cupping Tony’s chin, thumb caressing the smaller man’s cheek. “Don’t. Baby doll. Playing dumb doesn’t suit you. Never did.”

Tony could feel the Winter Soldier’s breath on his skin. The cold metal warmed quickly, and it was so familiar, so comforting. Tony’s breath hitched and his eyes hooded. This was still so familiar. After so many years, his body still recognized his Winter.

“Don’t…” His voice was broken and weak, like Tony’s resolve, giving in and breaking more and more the longer he felt Winter, saw Winter, smelled Winter, was with Winter and not the facade of Barnes. 

“Why not, doll? I missed you.”

Lips brushed the corner of his mouth, making him shiver all over. “I’m not. We’re not. Winter, please.”

Later, Tony would hate himself. Later Tony would regret that he had caved. The moment Winter’s lips pressed against his, a firm yet gentle hand stroking his stomach, Tony’s world narrowed down to the man in front of him. Old feelings he had thought destroyed surged forward once again. The heady feeling, the warmth pooling in his groin, the heavy body nestled against his front. 

Tony remembered.

“Winter,” he wanted to say. It came out as a moan when Winter nibbled on his neck.

“Sweet thing. Want you. Need you.”

“I… motel.”

~~~

Tony’s brain tried to kick back online plenty of times. But the Soldier knew which buttons to press, where to suck and bite. After all these years, the Soldier still knew how to make Tony want, how to keep him wanting, desiring more. 

The motel wasn’t the highest quality, the sheets old but at least clean. The taller man had kept Tony on the edge throughout their trip, first in the taxi then at reception and up to their room. As soon as the door closed behind them, Tony was pushed against the wall, Winter’s erection pressing against his stomach, a constant reminder of the height difference between them.

Open-mouthed kisses, teeth scraping against lips and cheeks. Hot breath fanning across each other’s skin. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Tony knew he shouldn’t be doing this. But his aching heart had other desires, not to mention his body. 

Tony’s voice was hoarse when he whispered, “Bed.”

Without much fanfare, Winter pulled Tony with him, nearly carrying him to the bed. Despite the lust coursing through both men, Winter’s actions were gentle, laying Tony on the bed carefully. Honey-dipped eyes, hooded and darkened by desire, blinked up at the strong, broad man above him. Winter looked at the engineer with a glimmer of possessiveness and such burning passion that Tony shivered. 

Chapped lips traveled Tony’s jawline, robbing him of breath, while clever fingers made easy work of the engineer’s pants. 

“James?” Tony wasn’t sure what he wanted to say, wasn’t sure if it was as important as it felt. But he still tried to catch the words he needed.

“Hush, Anthony. It’s us, for just one more time. Only us.” Winter’s reply was breathed against his neck and collarbone. 

Somehow, Tony had lost his shirt and James started to trace a path down Tony’s pectorals, Kissing, biting, marking Tony’s skin.

Every scar got devotion and caresses. Flesh and metal fingers alike traced every visible mark on the smaller man’s body, and Tony was keening and moaning, relaxing under Winter’s ministrations.

While their passion had been hurried and animalistic before, it slowed now too soft and tender. Tony’s lust simmered below his skin, not all-consuming anymore, sparking and waiting to break out again.

James kissed and nibbled at soft flesh, working his way to Tony’s boxer briefs. Soon enough, the hot mouth traced lines over his still clothed erection. eliciting breathy moans from Tony. 

Tony lost track of how long Bucky teased him for, bringing Tony back to that delirious midpoint between not enough and too much. When Winter finally took Tony’s erection into his warm wet mouth, Tony started to thrash around. With every swept of tongue, with every pleased hum from James, Tony got closer and closer to the edge.

At one point, Winter let go of him for a matter of seconds, barely long enough to register with Tony and bring him a bit down again. Then a slick, cold, metal finger probed at Tony’s hole. The surprised yelp which was about to escape the smaller brunet turned into a deep throaty moan the moment Tony felt Winter push his finger in.

It stung briefly, the engineer not used to bottoming for anyone anymore. James had been special to him, a long time ago. If he was honest, James still was special to Tony. It showed in the way that he kissed Tony’s thighs tenderly while finger-fucking him.

It showed in the way how Tony wanted to bite down on his hand to hold back his moans but Bucky kissed him instead, reading Tony’s body, knowing to anticipate most of Tony’s reactions before they could manifest. 

It showed in the way Tony trusted the other man to take care of him. How Tony let Winter in, first one, then two and finally three metal fingers, working Tony open, bringing pleasure so intense it bordered on pain.

And then, Winter withdrew his fingers, removed the last of his clothes, and laid above Tony, once more peppering him with kisses before Tony felt James’s cockhead pushing against his hole.

The stretch barely stung at all, after how thoroughly Winter had prepared him. Still, for just a moment Tony flashed back to their last time. Before Tony met Steve, met the Avengers and quit his and Winter’s arrangement. 

But instead of the fast pace, Tony remembered Winter preferring, the super-soldier withdrew only shallowly, staying close, before gliding into Tony again. 

The sound Winter made could only be described as a contented sigh. When Tony’s brain finally came down a bit from the frantic lust, he realized what Winter was doing. What they were doing. They weren’t fucking. 

They weren’t doing some form of ‘with benefits’. 

They were making love. 

That realization brought tears to Tony’s eyes, making his vision swim, his breath catching for a reason other than sex.

The gentle rocking continued. Soon enough, the smaller man had to hold onto Winter, unable to deal with his emotions without touching him more. 

Although touching the bigger man helped Tony, it wasn’t enough. 

“Winter…” he whispered, eyes alarmingly wet. “Please… fuck me.”

Winter’s eyes locked with his, and Tony knew he wouldn’t get to feel the power which slumbered beneath the soldier's skin.

Somehow, being denied the only way Tony could pretend this _wasn’t_ what it was made the tears fall. Winter used one hand to stroke Tony’s cheek, cupping it, taking care of Tony, and whispered confessions spilled from both men’s lips throughout the rest of their love-making.

Later, they lay cuddling in bed, both spent and sated. Both clinging to each other. Dimly, Tony was aware that he had cried during the duration of their sex. Still, he never had felt as fulfilled and cared for as he did with Winter embracing him in this cheap motel bed.

~~~

  
  


Normally, mornings after tended to be awkward. Theirs should by all accounts be awkward as well, seeing as Winter was a wanted criminal and Tony one of the heroes supposed to catch him.

But it wasn’t. It never was. 

Not back then, when Winter knew Tony only as _The Mechanic_ , whose childish rebellion against his father had resulted in his forced service to Hydra. Not later, when being with Tony gave Winter reason to fight Hydra’s conditioning and they both escaped. And certainly not now, when the Avengers had tasked Tony with uncovering the Winter Soldier’s true identity and Tony found himself looking into the face of the man he loved so much. 

And so, instead of feeling uncomfortable with each other, they took a quick shower together, got dressed, and shared a farewell kiss before they went their separate ways. 

Much as he wanted to ask Bucky to come back with him, Tony was acutely aware that James would need more time to reconcile the role he played tonight with his life as Bucky Barnes before returning to Avengers tower. Hell, maybe he wasn’t finished with his revenge mission yet. Only God knew how many lowlife Hydra assholes were still running around, and Tony couldn’t blame Bucky for struggling to find peace at home when the people who had kept him enslaved so long were still at large.

~~

Arriving back at the tower, Tony strolled into the common area and was immediately accosted by Steve.

“Tony! Have you seen Bucky?”

“Nope, Cap. Maybe he’s out for a run or something?” Pretending with his family felt wrong, always leaving a bitter taste on his tongue, but he was too scared of losing them. He couldn’t lose them, not after he finally felt like he belonged, and he couldn’t take them from Bucky either.

  
  


“I don’t think so. He wasn’t in his room yesterday afternoon and hasn’t returned to the tower since! I’ve asked Jarvis, and everyone else. I thought that maybe Bucky was just hiding out with you in the workshop…” The blond sounded sad, heartbroken really. For a second, Tony contemplated spilling the truth, telling them all who Bucky was. Who Tony had been.

Before the brunet could open his mouth, Natasha interrupted. “Bucky isn’t the only one who went missing, Tony. I tried to find you yesterday about some upgrades for my widow bites. JARVIS said you’d gone for a walk?”

“I was out. Needed a change of scene, so to say. Came back late, and I had some ideas I wanted to get scribbled down. Now I’m kinda in need of more coffee.”

A soft snort from Clint and a mumbled, “What else is new?” let Tony know that he could still bluff his way around. Even Natasha only shook her head before she stepped closer and ruffled his hair, smiling softly at him.

Truth be told, Tony hated himself at that moment, and for the rest of the morning while he spent time with his family and pretended to be none the wiser.

A few more hours passed before JARVIS alerted them to a new message from the Winter Soldier. On the main screen in the shared living room, they saw a dead body, a rifle laying next to it and the message written in blood beneath. 

“Catch me if you can, 

-Tell them who I am, I dare you.”

Everyone was immediately in mission mode: Steve barking out orders, Thor musing as to who had been killed, Clint telling them where the location most likely was.

Then Nat pointed the one thing out Tony had hoped no one would concentrate on, “Someone knows who the Soldier is.”

Steve looked confused, tilting his head for her to continue. The others fell quiet, waiting. 

“The Soldier’s clearly addressing someone he thinks knows his identity. He could just be taunting us, but… the way he wrote it? The way the body was positioned with the rifle next to it? It was something personal, something the person he’s writing to is aware of.”

“He’s playing a game,” Tony interrupted, hoping that the lead in his stomach and the cold fist around his heart wouldn’t prevent him from performing as well as he needed to.

Natasha raised an eyebrow, “What makes you think of that, Toshka?”

Breathing deeply - once, twice, three times - Tony gave them some of the information he had kept to himself so long. “I can’t be too sure, but the rifle looks like one of the earlier models I used to design. I didn’t like the firepower and range, so we only produced a limited number of them. I thought I’d managed to get all of them back. So, either the Soldier has stolen one, and the former owner knew but didn’t care about it. Or…”

“Or?” Steve prompted.

“Or the rightful owner knows who the Soldier is. And the Soldier wants us to go on a wild goose chase for the rightful owner.”

Tony was aware how risky this was for him. He was a bundle of nerves, praying to not slip up in this game. Yet, reading those words, remembering what Winter had whispered in the night, Tony knew he had to either let the game continue, trying his damndest to win, or risk being dragged to ruins by Winter before he could even say ‘James Buchanan Barnes is the Winter Soldier’.

Suddenly Bucky was there, amidst them all, smiling sheepishly when Steve yelped, “Bucky! Where’ve you been? We have a new lead. Are you ok?”

“Yeah, Stevie. I’m good. What’s the lead?”

While Steve recounted the situation, Tony watched Bucky closely, looking for anything that might give away his identity to the others, anything that might tell them that he’s the one leaving the notes and dropping the bodies. Out of his peripheral vision, Tony registered Natasha eyeing Bucky suspiciously. ‘ _Oh? This spells trouble._ ’

~~~

They went out then to inspect the crime scene. Just as Tony had assumed, the rifle was a Stark Rifle, which meant the Avengers would be digging into any and all sales of Stark weapons, though this was mostly left to Tony, thankfully. 

While Tony did that, the spy twins and Falcon looked into the dead man’s background. Their result: HYDRA. 

They doubled down in their effort to find the Winter Soldier’s base. Anyone who was able to identify Hydra members was a viable ally, even if they weren’t completely on board with his methods. 

Every Avenger knew they would have to bring the Winter Soldier in as soon as they found him, though no one was entirely sure they wanted to. Steve kept up the ‘ _Maybe we can get the authorities to reduce the Soldier’s sentence. He’s trying to do right. His methods are just wrong_ ’ spiel.

A couple of hours passed before Tony had a list of every customer who had ever brought a Stark Rifle, as well as a list of which people Tony had bought them back from. There were only two names left. Two names of already dead HYDRA Agents.

But only two people on the team were aware of it.

~~~

“I’m sick of this game you’re playing with me, sweetheart.”

Tony whirled around, not expecting Bucky to let his pretense fall in such a public environment. Maybe public wasn’t quite the right word, since the others weren’t around, even though they stood in the common living room. 

“You starte-”

“Don’t give me that. We both know why this game started. Aren’t you tired of this, Anthony?”

The steel grey eyes glinted with intent, though Tony never could tell with James whether that intent was to kill or to kiss. 

Still, Tony kept his mouth shut, waiting, for what he wasn’t sure. Maybe to be a hit, maybe for a kiss.

“We shared a dream once, honey.”

Never in Tony’s life had his eyes snapped up as fast as they did just now. Swallowing in a vain attempt to get the dry feeling from his throat, Tony watched Winter. The soldier had used the time to close in, their bodies once again almost fused together, no space left between them.

“Yes… once.”

“And then you replaced me with the Avengers.”

“No!”

“Yes, you did, honey. But I… I still love you.” Bucky’s lips brushed against Tony’s and Tony could only lean into the kiss, never saying that he still loved the other as well.

~~~

A couple of days passed. During those days they gravitated more and more towards each other. Whenever James was in the tower they could be found in close proximity, almost always touching.

The team had caught on and had all given them shovel talks for each respective person. Tony liked Clint’s best: “Man if either of you idiots hurt each other, I’m not here for the complaints and fallout. Tony, you gotta buy me a farm, and Bucky, you gotta work it so I don’t have to.”

Today though, Tony was for once getting up from 8 hours of sleep and shuffled into the common area. The atmosphere was anything but light. 

“Uh?” he inquired intelligently. Grateful for the coffee which was shoved under his nose, Tony took a few gulps before trying again. “Why is everyone so tense? What's up?”

Steve answered, his voice a mixture between annoyed, soft, and tense, “We got another message from the Winter Soldier last night.”

That did the trick to get even the last of Tony’s brain cells online.

“What’s the message?”

Steve picked up a sheet of paper which Tony hadn’t seen before. ‘ _Damn my under-caffeinated brain. Also, damn James for pulling anything while I sleep._ ’

Before Tony could form a more useful thought, Steve readout, “ _‘We shared a dream once, honey. I’m done playing this game. Me or them. Decide by noon. Avengers, come and find me.'_ ”

Ice filled Tony’s veins. Wide brown eyes stared disbelievingly at Steve. The blond thankfully misinterpreted Tony’s expression. 

“Yes, I was shocked too. Especially since the Soldier included an address. Nat has already reached out to a few of her contacts. If they can be trusted, it’s an old warehouse down at the docks. We were waiting for you to wake up and for it to be close enough to noon.”

Tony felt like he was moving through a lucid dream. He drank the rest of his coffee, glanced at the oven clock - 10.55 am - and turned. “I’ll go get dressed. Be at the quinjet in 15.”

~~

  
  


The Avengers, excluding Bruce who thought it was too much of a safety risk to include him at the docks, were confused by the turn of events. Tony could literally hear their thoughts.

_Why was the Soldier just standing alone in the warehouse?_

They were supposed to intercept the Winter Soldier and the ominous ‘ _honey_ ’. Suddenly, the Soldier turned in their direction. Instead of attacking, though, he seemed to wait patiently for them to come closer. Steve took the lead, closing in. 

Once they all were in hearing range, the Soldier spoke up, “So you finally decided, sweet thing?”

This was the moment everything would crumble. Tony knew it. Making a gut decision, Tony stepped out of his suit. He ignored the protest of his friends, _his family_. Taking a small step closer, and when nothing happened another and some more, Tony closed in on Winter until he stood within reach.

“You’re fed up with playing, darling?” He tried to block out the team. He didn’t need to turn to know the slowly creeping realization blooming on their faces. Telegraphing his movements, Tony reached for Winter’s facemask, half expecting his lover to pull away.

When he was allowed to touch, Tony took the mask from Winter’s face. By the wounded gasps coming from Steve, the team now was very well aware who the Soldier was.

“Been tired of playin’ this game for months now. Told ya. Love ya.”

Tony stared into those intense grey eyes. Before he knew what he was doing, he leaned in, stealing a kiss, whispering, “I love you too, Winter. But…”

A deep, bone-tired sigh left the taller man before he took a step backward. Loud enough for the shocked team to hear, James said, “You were the one who got me outta Hydra. You were the one who was always with me. Then you ditched me for them. Are you gonna do it again?”

Tony winced. Those words had hurt the first time and would continue to hurt every time James said them. Casting a look to the side, Tony answered, “I couldn’t be that man anymore Winter. I was The Mechanic” - Tony heard Clint choke, knowing full well that the team had unearthed the Mechanic’s role during Winter’s HYDRA days a few months ago” - for the majority of my youth. I have so many sins to atone for.”

“Do you think I don’t?”

“Oh, I know, James. I know everything they made you do. Most of it we did together. But unlike you, I had the Avengers and the resources to be Iron Man once and for all. I could stop turning a blind eye to what we did, to how many people we killed, because with the Avengers I found another way to rid the world of the bad. Of those that hurt you, Winter!”

A thick silence followed his words. Finally, James leaned forward, pressing his lips once again to Tony’s before embracing him. “We’re gonna rid the world of HYDRA together again?”

If Tony clung to James a bit too tightly, James didn’t complain. “Yes. Together as Avengers.”

It was as if a curtain was lifted, and Tony remembered that their team was still there. 

Whirling around, never leaving Bucky’s embrace, Tony started at the faces of those he called family.

The atmosphere was tense, all parties eying each other. Tony felt his dread return once more. He prayed to a God he never quite believed in that this wouldn’t be the end of their family.

Surprisingly, it was Clint who spoke up first. “Man, you could have saved us hours of sleep, I’m pissed about that. But... “ the archer shrugged, “If this is the last time you keep shit like this from us, then I’m pretty sure my hearing aids have been offline the whole time.”

Thor grinned brightly, adding, “My Shield Brothers were on a dark path once, but now they are wandering the right one. I’m most proud of Friend Anthony finding his way and now helping his love to find his as well.”

Nat gave Tony a calculating look before she closed the distance and swatted him over the head. “You shouldn’t have wasted our time with this chase, Toshka. We all have things to atone for. You and Bucky aren’t any different.”

Lastly, Steve smiled crookedly at them, “Well… I guess we’ll have to talk some more about all of this?”

Tony felt the snort before he heard it. He pressed a bit closer into James’ chest, enjoying the heat emitting through the tack gear. “That’s kinda an understatemen’, Stevie, isn’t it?”

And just like that, whatever tension had remained was gone. Yes, they had a lot to work through. The Avengers had to come up with a cover story for the Winter Soldier, and Tony knew he would be on thin ice with them for the foreseeable future. But walking hand in hand with Winter, while Steve shoved at Winter and Clint joked with Tony, being with his family and his love, Tony was more than willing to endure whatever weird trust games his family would come up with.

Before they boarded the quinjet, Tony remembered something. “Hey, James.”

“Hm?”

“I totally can. Catch you that is” 

Laughter filled the space.

**Author's Note:**

>  **BBB**  
>  -  
> Title: Catch Me If You Can  
> Collaborator Name: Fighting_for_Creativity  
> Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26273221  
> Square Filled: U5 Partner in crime,  
> Ship/Main Pairing: WinterIron  
> Rating: Explicit  
> Major Tags: Criminal Bucky, Ex-Criminal Tony, kind of ModernAu , Graphic Sex, Team as Family  
> Summary: The Winter Soldier was a wanted Criminal. No one seemed to know who he was. Every time the Avengers went out to find him, they came back empty-handed. At one point the criminal started to leave messages for the Avengers.  
> Still, they weren't any closer than they had been before and were beginning to think it was little more than a wild goose chase.  
> That was until Tony Stark found himself faced with more of his past than he liked.
> 
> Word Count: 4280


End file.
